Plan of Salvation
For this is good and
acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who
desires all men to be saved and to come to the
knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:3-4)
In
the Holy Scriptures the term "salvation" is used in
context with rescue, protection and redemption.
The salvation in Christ is based on:
- His coming into
the flesh as expression God’s love towards all men
- His sacrificial
death and His resurrection
- The bestowal and activity of the
Holy Spirit
For us human beings the salvation emerges out of
Christ’s sacrifice and brings about release from
sin, the permanent abolition of the separation from
God and grants everlasting fellowship with Him.
The
faithful is experiencing current
salvation already through fellowship with Jesus
Christ in word and sacrament by which he is prepared
for eternal salvation, the participation in the
glory with God.
In accordance with the
interpretations in the Holy
Scriptures, a conveying of salvation in the
current phase of God’s plan of salvation is
brought about by the apostle ministry that
has the mission to preach the word of God and to
dispense the sacraments.
Purpose of this conveying
salvation is to gather the Bride of Christ, to
prepare her for the Return of the Lord
as well as to take part in the
Wedding of the Lamb. Goal of the eternal
salvation of the Bride, who faithfully accepted the
godly offer of salvation, is eternal fellowship with
God already on the Day of the Lord.
In the following
phases of the salvation plan, salvation is
experienced in different ways:
- In connection with the great
tribulation God grants salvation to the martyrs:
They receive the grace of Jesus Christ (illustrated
by the picture of the white robes – Revelation
7:13), take part in the First Resurrection and reign
as priests together with Christ a thousand years.
- In connection with the Last
Judgment God once more grants salvation through His
Son; by this salvation the concerned will have
eternal fellowship with God in the New Creation.
In the various phases
of God’s salvation history, kind and
measure of the salvation conveyed therefore show
different forms. But above all, it is God’s will
that all men receive help!
What will happen in the future? From the Holy
Bible we know:
The First Resurrection
The greatest event in the history of human beings
will happen as written in Revelation 20:6. The
First Resurrection start on the Day of the Lord or the
second coming of Jesus Christ, the Savior.
Jesus Christ has promised: "And if I go and prepare
a place for you, I will come again and receive you
to Myself; that where I am, there you may be
also" (John 14:3).
Who will take part on the Day of the Lord?
They who will take part on the Day of the Lord
are souls who grasp the grace of the Lord, listen to
words of GOD, follow His messengers whom walk in front, faith
until the end, and stay as the overcomer.
As children of GOD we are called to take part on the
Day of the Lord. We must be aware about
it and believe it, eventhough we can't imagine as
human beings. Deeply thanks, great joy, and
intimate love for GOD and His Son fulfill our
hearts, and with fear of GOD we stay before GOD's
great grace that He will grant for us.
What will happen in the First Resurrection?
When the Lord Jesus Christ comes again, souls in the
beyond (who dead in GOD), who has been ready for
that, will be resurrected first. Then souls of
the Bride of Christ who still live in earth shall
all be changed. They shall be not earthly die,
but they shall have a new body. Then all of
them, as the Son of GOD was ascensed, shall be
ascensed into heaven (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; 1
Thessalonians 4:17).
On the Day of the Lord Jesus will appear
as a Bridegroom, to pick up His Bride to take part
in the Wedding of the Lamb. The Bride of
Christ is souls who
complete all prerequisites and give themselves to be
prepared. All preconditions needed are rebirth
with water and the Spirit (cf. John 3:5) and taking
part in the Holy Communion to eat His flesh and
drink His blood (cf. John 6:54).
They who are not belongs to the Bride
of Christ will be in the great tribulation.
But God grants salvation to the martyrs: They
receive the grace of Jesus Christ (illustrated by
the picture of the white robes – Revelation 7:13),
take part in the First Resurrection and reign as
priests together with Christ a thousand years.
When the Day of the Lord will happen?
No one knows the exact time about this, only GOD
knows. But signs and current conditions, which
work of the Holy Spirit will be completed and the
Lord's Bride say: "Lord Jesus, come!", show us that
Jesus' promise will be fulfilled.
Other events after the First Resurrection are:
-
Thousand Years Kingdom of Peace
-
The Last Judgment
-
A New Heaven and a New Earth
Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the
first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea (Revelation 21:1).
Source:
The New Apostolic Church
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